Leningrad (band)

Leningrad (), also known as Gruppirovka Leningrad () and Bandformirovanie Leningrad (), is a popular Russian ska punk band from Saint Petersburg (formerly Leningrad), led by Sergey "Shnur" Shnurov.

Composed of 14 members, the band appeared in the late 1990s. They soon became famous for their vulgar lyrics containing obscenity, aestheticization of alcoholism and Russian mat, the main reason they were avoided by most radio stations at first. But this did not stop Leningrad's growing popularity, partly because of the rich brass sound. The band have made their way to radio and TV (filler noises covering the prohibited words), with Shnurov even presenting some New Year's Eve TV shows.

Circa 2007 the group began experimenting with female back vocals, finally choosing tall redhead jazz singer Yuliya Kogan as a permanent participant.

Disbanded in 2008, Leningrad reunited in 2010. Several new songs and videos have been released since, most of them featuring lead vocals by Kogan, not Shnur.

Cultural impact

As Shnurov said himself: "Our songs are just about the good sides of life, vodka and girls that is." Several Leningrad's recent songs portray woman (by Yuliya Kogan's voice) worshipping man's penis., . One more song, Ne Mozhet Byt ("It Can't Be True"), released through YouTube only.

The band are known to be so disliked by the former mayor of Moscow Yuriy Luzhkov, that he has cancelled all of their ever attempted public events in the...
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